Bliss the Capitol Can't Take Away
by Amanduhx3
Summary: Katniss/Peeta. Oneshot. My name is Katniss Everdeen, soon to be Katniss Mellark. I am 25. I defeated the Capitol. Today, I am taking on the greatest challenge I have yet to face. I am getting married today.


My name is Katniss Everdeen, soon to be Katniss Mellark. I am 25. I defeated the Capitol. Today, I am taking on the greatest challenge I have yet to face. I am getting married today.

_Why couldn't Cinna be here to design everything I own?_ I think as my stylists from the Games and the War dress me in my wedding dress. Of course I love my dress, I wouldn't wear a dress I hated to my own wedding, but it's just lacking something it can never get. Cinna's magic touch. _Because he's dead_, a voice in my mind says, and I shut my eyes and shake my head, wanting to block the thought out.

"Careful! You'll disrupt your make up if you keep shaking." Venia tells me, touching up my face some more. I sigh and let them have their way with me, like I've been letting them do all morning. It's now around noon, and the wedding is at 2:30. I know I want this. I know I want Peeta. Peeta and I have come a very long way, and I think it's safe to say that I love him. He loves me. We are already one, so the wedding is just a formality. A bothersome, scary formality. I'm not one to dress up, or put on a big show about my affection for people. Besides, after this, I'll no longer bear the name my Father and Prim has. Or had. I don't even know how to be someone's wife, would this change anything? Peeta had assured me through out this process that nothing would change. We would still be Peeta and Katniss, baker/painter and Mockingjay/hunter. Still, I know it will change people's views on our relationship. Will they expect me to act more proper and to be a housewife? I couldn't fathom the thought, mainly because I don't know how to do that.

"Okay! I think you're done." Venia says about an hour later and turns to Flavius for approval, who nods excitedly.

"You look beautiful, Katniss." Octavia says dreamily, and I thank her for her kind words. I'm very conscious of how I treat Octavia now, because 13's torture has really changed her mentally. She's shy and easily scared now, even years after the war.

"Oh, Katniss!" A familiar voice cries, running up to me and hugging me. I break away from her tight hug, making sure it is in fact my Mother in my arms.

"Mom? What are you doing here?" I ask.

"Katniss, surely you can't think I would miss my daughter's own wedding." she says as if I should know that already. I wince at the thought that this will be the only daughter of hers that will have a wedding. Prim still haunts me. Once I wrap my brain around the fact that she's actually back in 12 to see me get married, I hug her tightly, not wanting to let go since she might leave me if I do. She has a habit of leaving at inconvenient times, both mentally and physically. Still, she's my Mother and I love her. We're family. After catching up, she tells me she has to take her seat and mingle with the other guests. The guests in attendance isn't exactly a small number, but that doesn't bother me much. There's Haymitch, Effie, Annie, her son, Johanna, Plutarch, President Paylor, Thom, Greasy Sae, her daughter and now my Mother, plus the prep team. Then there's basically everyone else who came back to 12 to live, and I don't know how many people that is. President Paylor agreed to be the one to confirm our marriage, which I couldn't agree more to.

"I think we'd better put your veil on now, Katniss." Octavia says shyly, shaking me from my thoughts about the attendees.

"Oh, okay, sure." I say as I step off the platform I was standing on all day. It feels good to move my legs and relish in the movements as the prep team leads me to a small room. In the small room, I'm placed in front of two doors, and I assume that when they open them it'll be time for me to walk down the aisle. Flavius carefully puts my veil on, trying very hard not to mess up my perfect hair. I don't like the veil, it puts me off my guard since I can't see anything behind or to the side of me and I want it off, but the way the prep team looks when they see me in it, all ready to be wed, I don't have the heart to tell them I want it off.

"You look like a dream." Venia says, hugging me, careful not to mess my appearance up any.

"A beautiful dream," Octavia says dreamily. "I want to be as pretty as you one day, Katniss." I smile and tell her she's beautiful herself so not to worry, and I can't help but think that she sounds like an awestruck little kid.

When it's time for me to walk down the aisle, I'm a jumble of nerves. I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to feel like this, but it still makes me upset that I feel this way. I close my eyes underneath my veil, picturing Prim is right beside me. I can almost hear her voice next to me when I picture what she would say to me right now.

"_I'm so proud of you, Katniss. You made the right choice, Peeta's a good man. Be good to him, as a wife and a friend, and don't forget to be good to yourself, too. Don't be scared, I know you'll make a great wife._" It's so real in my head that I turn to my left, just to make sure she's not beside me. The music starts playing, and I remember Flavius and Venia telling me that was my cue to start walking. I take a deep breath as the doors open and walk out into the huge room. I spot Peeta, looking more perfect than ever, and I want to just run up the aisle and say "I do" now. But I can't, apparently it's not proper etiquette, so I take one slow step at a time. I can feel everyone's eyes on me and I want to look down, but Venia gave me strict orders not to. I contemplated breaking those orders, but then she reminds me of one of the first pieces of advice Cinna ever gave me. "Keep your head high and smile." So I do just that as I make my way to Peeta. I finally get to him and we hold hands, but I'm sure I've got to be hurting his hands with how hard I'm squeezing. Once again, he's the only thing composing me. Paylor gives a short speech about us, our contributions to Panem, and her wish that he have eternal happiness. I grit my teeth and smile through it, while Peeta looks completely calm. It's like he gets married every day, and his presence seems to calm me down some, too.

"Do you, Katniss Everdeen, take Peeta Mellark to be your husband, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?" Paylor says.

"I do." I say, using all the concentration I have to not stutter or mess up while saying the words.

"Do you, Peeta Mellark, take Katniss Everdeen to be your wife, to have and to hold, for richer and for poorer, in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?"

"I definitely do." he says, and kisses my one of my hands. I start to cry from reasons that I can't explain, I just feel, and he smiles like he's the happiest person in the world.

"Then by all means, please kiss your bride." Paylor says, unable to hide her happiness any longer. I start shaking from crying out of happiness as Peeta pulls my veil up and pulls me in for a kiss, and I wrap my arms around his neck. We both deepen the kiss and I start smiling during it when I can hear the cheers and clapping all around me. We pull away, needing air, and Paylor shouts from behind us as we turn to face the guests.

"May I present to you all, Peeta and Katniss Mellark." I then jump a little as I hear something explode, and I grab Peeta's hand in a panic, my mind jumping to an attack. Then, I see tiny bits of colorful confetti fill the air, no doubt Effie's doing, who jumped at the opportunity to organize everything about my wedding. Peeta and I had let her, and spent many months laughing at Haymitch, who had to sober up more often since Effie constantly called on his and Plutarch's help. Peeta had offered to help, too, but she was insistent that the Bride and Groom do no work of any kind, just leisurely activities like picking a dress and wedding colors.

Suddenly everything's a beautiful chaotic blur of colorful confetti and yelps of happiness, and many people find their way to hug me and congratulate me. My Mother is the first, then Effie, then the prep team, then Haymitch, and so on. I lose sight of Peeta and have no time to find him, either. Then, throughout the madness of celebration, a familiar hand finds mine. They pull me close, and we start swaying in a chaotic room. Peeta's mouth gets close to my ear as we sway and mine gets close to his, and we talk over the sound.

"Hello, Mrs. Mellark." he says, and it's clear from his voice he's excited about calling me that.

"That's no fair, your name doesn't change. I have nothing new to call you."

"How about husband?"

"Husband Peeta?" I snort.

"I'm sure just husband or Peeta would do, but the two of them together don't sound so bad as long as you're saying it." I smile, because for once, I'm in complete bliss and the Capitol has no control over it.


End file.
